In the Pursuit of New Hobbies

Earlier this year, I wrote about my first trip after a year without flying. After a trip to my hometown for Holi, I ended up back in New Delhi — the focal point of the current Covid-19 outbreak.

I can’t complain about that experience. I’m currently staying at The Leela Palace New Delhi, my home away from home. Many of you may have tinkered with new hobbies during the continuous global lockdowns over the past year. For me, besides my religious devotion to my workouts — I’ve been working on averting pandemic damage on CuddlyNest.

I got the lucky chance to finally endeavour in a new hobby — and right from Leela’s acclaimed on-site French-Italian restaurant, Le Cirque. Overlooking the New Delhi skyline, the restaurant is a branch of the historic Le Cirque in New York City.

One day, in the hopes they wouldn’t refuse, I asked if I could use their kitchen to make my very own dish for a dinner guest I was expecting. To my great surprise, they ended up warmly welcoming me into their kitchen (and even provided me with my very own chef’s uniform, toque and all).

Together, we made sous vide lobster in garlic butter, accompanied with lemon hollandaise sauce — and I led it all. It was a pleasant change from the monumental amount of screen time I had spent in my room upstairs. The team was less busy than usual considering the restrictions in place, and all that energy was mitigated towards experimentation with an overexcited guest—me!

This was admittedly my first time cooking lobster, and what a wonderful place to do so from. I will, without a doubt, continue experimenting with all the cooking tricks I’ve been taught. Though my little kitchen back in Split doesn’t compare, when I’m back, I’ll think back to that Delhi skyline and see if that culinary inspiration managed to travel over to Europe with me.

Even though lockdown restrictions may be loosening, let’s try not to lose the momentum of the hobbies we’ve honed over the past year.

I’ll conclude by saying that I’m very thankful to the team at Le Cirque and The Leela Palace for their continuous sublime hospitality. I now have an energy that I was low on. As someone who works in travel accommodation, it’s no surprise that I can be a bit picky about where I choose to stay — that pickiness is inevitable when your own platform offers millions of properties to choose from. The Leela is an exceptional place, and I don’t say that lightly.